


Priorities

by Ruingaraf



Category: Biohazard | Resident Evil (Gameverse)
Genre: Character Study, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-30
Updated: 2013-01-30
Packaged: 2017-11-27 11:57:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 735
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/661741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruingaraf/pseuds/Ruingaraf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Family is the most important thing, always. No exceptions.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Priorities

**Author's Note:**

> I never see any character-centric fic for Claire, it's always shipping fic. Which is a real shame, because I've always thought the way she goes through absolute hell just to find her brother was both fascinating and endearing. Still, I've always felt that there were moments that she was really scared, doubted herself, and wanted to write about one of those.
> 
> This particular piece is old, please try not to cringe too much.

“Hey, I’m going.”

Claire Redfield stood at the door of her dorm room on a Monday morning, pulling on her riding gear with a tense look.

“This early?” Her roommate, a dark-haired and olive-skinned girl, did not look entirely pleased at being woken before five-thirty AM. “Your class isn’t— what are you, taking your motorcycle?” A pause. “Claire, what’s going on?”

“It’s probably nothing,” the redhead confessed, looking down. “But my brother… I’ve been calling him for days and he hasn’t picked up even once. I haven’t heard from him for a week and a half now, and I’ve left a ton of messages.”

“That’s all? What if he’s just busy? Didn’t you say he’s with the police, and they’re working on some kind of serial killer case?”

“Yeah, but… he always calls me back. Always. Since…” Claire trailed off, lost in memories. A moment later the reverie seemed to break, as she realized this was neither the time nor place. “But that’s not all. Last night I was so worried I could hardly sleep, so I turned on the news in the cafeteria. The city he lives in, Raccoon, there’s been an outbreak of some kind of horrible disease. Thousands are already dead, they said.”

“Oh my god,” The half-asleep girl clapped a hand over her mouth in horror. “So…”

“Yeah. I mean, he’s probably okay,” she forced a grin “and really busy because the police are shorthanded, or something, but… I need to go and make sure for myself. Plus, I can skip a couple classes; this is a lot more important.”

“Do you want me to drop by and let the professors know?”

Claire shook her head. “Thanks, but no. I’ll tell them when I come back, I shouldn’t be gone more than a day or two.”

—-

Forty-eight hours later, Claire was booking a flight to France on a hope and a prayer. This isn’t at all how she’d thought things would be. It was insane, she was jumping continents with only the clothes on her back and her small savings, pulled out in cash. But this was for Chris. This was for family, and if they’d learned anything from all those years ago it was that family was the most important thing in the world.

She sat in the cheap plastic seat of the terminal, shaking and covered in the stench of blood and smoke. But it was too late to back out now.

Is this what Chris had been fighting against these last few months? Those horrible things? Zombies, the licking-tongue monsters, the giant cockroaches, and the one she’d dubbed ‘Mr. X’?

Tears prickled in her eyes and she did her best not to lean over and throw up.

—-

As soon as she touched down in France, eight hours later, something changed in her.

This was something big. Bigger than her, bigger than her brother, probably bigger than the New York Stock Exchange. If she was going to get through, this, find her brother, make sure he was safe, she was going to have to chin up. Be like him.

What would Chris do in this situation? He’d know what to do, he wouldn’t be staring blankly at a wall of travel brochures, wondering what the hell he’d just done and if he should book a flight back to the States and let the authorities handle it.

First thing’s first. He’d tell her to find a change of clothes, get a good meal in her, and get some rest. She’d be no good to anyone completely strung out like this. Think, Claire, think. You used the meat between your ears to get this far, now keep with it.

One of the notes she'd found wandering through that godforsaken place had mentioned Umbrella Europe. Their headquarters was in France, she knew that from watching the news. But how…

She could break into their offices, hack their computer, and see if they had a file on him. They probably did, if they were half as interested in him as he was in them. It could work. It’d take months of planning, but she could do it. She’d have to.

For a moment, she almost laughed at how insane this was. And then again at her own desperation. But the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, or so they say. She reviewed her mental checklist.

Shower. Food. Sleep.

Gun.


End file.
